Nanowire Introduces World’s Tiniest Battery

Now how about that? A filament that is thinner than a human hair but will hold twice the charging capacity of today’s lithium-ion battery! Scientists at the Sandia National Labs in Albuquerque, New Mexico have created a filament that is thinner than human hair to hold twice the charge of a similar lithium ion battery.

This new research will lead to smaller, cheaper batteries and the the target market for these are the electric cars, laptops and cell phones. Not just that, scientists say lighter batteries are much welcomed in a whole range of other devices and machines which include submarines and even airplanes!

The tiny filament of the thin battery is made of tin oxide anode and lithium cobalt oxide cathode that is suspended in an ionic liquid electrolyte. When this whole setup is charged, ions traveling along the tin oxide nanowire double in length and also bend and wiggle which produces what is called “Medusa front”.

Jianyu Huang who leads the team of scientists said in a press release, “These observations prove that nanowires can sustain large stress induced by lithiation without breaking, indicating that nanowires are very good candidates for battery electrodes. How they evolve during charging and offer guidance in how to mitigate them”.

It will be exciting to note that if this technology comes to the market, hybrid and electric cars will be cheaper and could drive longer on a single charge!